The Warriors of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 5 and Six Say my name and scare you

Before Liu Zheng asked Liu Biao anything, Liu Biao on the tower had already taken the initiative to ask Liu Zheng.

"Who are you and why did you offend me in Xiangyang? Are you trying to rebel?"

Although Liu Biao on the tower had known for a long time that these people dared to attack Xiangyang, they must be extraordinary rebels, but as a Jingzhou shepherd, he still had to say something official, after all, he wanted to show the might of the Han Dynasty.

Liu Zheng in the city heard Liu Biao's words, but he was not moved.

When Liu Biao asked about his identity, he directly admitted it.

"Lord Liu Biao, it seems that you are a noble person and forget things. We have been beating our neighbors for many years, and you don't even know me, Liu Zheng. I, Liu Zheng, really don't have much reputation."

"But it doesn't matter, I think when I break into the city and capture you alive, you will definitely have an impression of me."

Liu Zheng proudly said something to Liu Biao. When Liu Zheng's name was spoken, the faces of the people on the tower immediately changed.

Although Liu Biao had guessed from the very beginning that the people in front of him were probably Liu Zheng's soldiers, but Liu Biao was extremely surprised when he heard that Liu Zheng admitted himself and revealed his identity as Liu Zheng. .

At the beginning, even though Liu Biao knew that the people in front of him were Liu Zheng's men, he never thought that the famous Liu Zheng was right in front of him, and he was not in Changsha, but came directly to Xiangyang. How did they come here? ?

This is the question lingering in Liu Biao's mind at this moment.

But he couldn't help thinking about it, Liu Zheng under the city spoke again.

"If Liu Biao is acquainted, he will quickly open the city and surrender. I think you and I are of the same clan, and I can spare your life. Otherwise, when I break through the city gate and enter the city, you will only have a dead end."

Liu Zheng didn't expect that, Liu Biao could really rely on this intimidation, so he frightened the city and surrendered, but Liu Zheng still wanted to say it, because it would increase the fear of the enemy, especially now that Liu Zheng was besieging the city, the more the news spread, the more the news spread. The sooner the better, let the people in Xiangyang City know, so as to increase the pressure on Liu Biao.

At the same time, the defenders in the city will begin to collapse.

Liu Biao's face was gloomy, and he didn't answer Liu Zheng, but Li Yan, who was standing beside Liu Biao, couldn't stand it anymore, and immediately yelled at Liu Zheng.

"The thieves don't want to be rampant. Attack the city if you have the ability. It is not so easy to take down Xiangyang City."

Li Yan is young, and he thinks he has some abilities. Although he met a strong enemy like Liu Zheng, he performed well. He was not afraid, but wanted to show it in front of Liu Biao. He knew that as long as this time He blocked Liu Zheng's attack, and he was bound to be promoted to Liu Biao's inner circle in the future, and his success and fame depended on this battle.

And Liu Zheng had also noticed Li Yan before. When Taishici attacked the city, it was because of Li Yan's defense that Taishici's troops were quickly defeated. At that time, Liu Zheng had already noticed When Li Yan arrived on the tower, he just didn't think about who this general is.

After all, some famous generals under Liu Biao's command are all under Liu Zheng's command. He really can't think of anyone else who has such ingenuity.

"What's your name?"

Liu Zheng hesitated for a moment, but couldn't help asking.

Hearing Liu Zheng's question, Li Yan was also overjoyed. Without any hesitation, he answered Liu Zheng directly. After all, he will still grasp the moment when he can become famous.

"Your grandfather's name is Li Yan, and he is the guard of Xiangyang City. I only need five thousand soldiers to block your attack!"

When Li Yan said this, he said it loudly. In fact, he also had another purpose, which was to let the soldiers around him hear it, so that the soldiers could feel at ease and not be frightened by Liu Zheng's few words.

"Li Yan."

Liu Zheng chanted Li Yan's name, and at the same time he quickly thought about whether this name had any impression. Liu Zheng searched around the generals under Liu Biao's tent, but he didn't remember Li Yan's name, but he remembered Liu Bei's subordinates in the later Shu Han, but he did not. There is one named Li Yan.

Although that Li Yan has some talents, he is not very good at being a human being, and he is not the type of person Liu Zheng likes.

So after hearing the name Li Yan, Liu Zheng didn't pay much attention to it.

However, Li Yan on the tower was silent after seeing Liu Zheng heard his name, but he was a bit proud. ,

"Liu Zheng dog thief, why don't you talk anymore, are you scared by me, Li Yan, if you are scared, get out as soon as possible."

Li Yan yelled out again, trying to overwhelm Liu Zheng in momentum.

Liu Zheng was pulled back from his contemplation by Li Yan, and smiled faintly.

"Based on your words, when I enter the city, you will be the first to die!"

Liu Zheng didn't say any more, he had already said what should be said, and now he just prepared to attack the city.

Of course, siege is not just about attacking.

Because he came in a hurry, and the siege equipment was too heavy to carry, so Liu Zheng didn't have any siege equipment here, and he couldn't beat the city with bare hands.

They need time to make siege equipment. Fortunately, the soldiers under Liu Zheng have all learned how to make siege equipment. Tai Shici's soldiers in Mali also have some veterans who serve as captains and village chiefs. They know how to make siege equipment. appliance.

Liu Zheng besieged the city for two days. During these two days, the news that he was asked to besiege the city gradually spread in Xiangyang City. At the same time, he used these time to prepare the equipment for the siege.

After Liu Zheng retreated, Liu Biao on the tower became anxious.

Although he has never experienced a siege battle, Liu Biao is so old and well-informed after all. As soon as he saw Liu Zheng's calm expression, he knew that Liu Zheng came prepared, otherwise Liu Zheng would not be so confident .

In Xiangyang right now, there are only 1 defenders. Even if he goes back to the city to encourage some village braves to join the city defense team, he can at most gather [-] people.

In front of Liu Zheng, there was an army of [-]. The [-] army did not surround the other gates at all, but only attacked one of the four gates. This put a lot of pressure on the defenders of Xiangyang City.

Because after this news came out, the people in the city couldn't sit still at all, and there must be a large number of people who wanted to flee. At that time, Liu Biao couldn't stop it, or if he stopped it, it would damage the morale of the army and make the soldiers in the city even more unwilling to defend.

Liu Biao stepped aside and called Li Yan.Lowering his voice, he asked Li Yan.

"Zhengfang, how sure are you that you can defend Xiangyang?"

Liu Biao was a little worried, worried that Xiangyang City could not be defended, and he had a faint plan to abandon the city and escape.

Chapter 5 and Seven

In the current situation, although it would be embarrassing to abandon the city and flee, at least there is no need to worry about saving one's life. Whether Liu Biao has soldiers or horses around him, the only choice is this.

But before leaving, he still wanted to make sure whether Xiangyang City could be guarded, and if he couldn't, he decided to escape.

But Li Yan's answer made Liu Biao hesitate again.

"My lord, the enemy's army is only [-]. If you can gather thousands more troops to come over, I'm [-]% sure that I can hold Xiangyang City and hold out until the reinforcements from Changsha arrive. There will be no problem."

After Li Yan's siege battle with Tai Shici just now, he was not very sure at first, but after seeing Liu Zheng's strength is no more than this, his confidence greatly increased. If Liu Biao can give him more manpower, then Naturally, Li Yan's confidence has greatly increased.

And he didn't say 100% can be defended, but humbly said [-]%.

But even if it was only [-]%, Liu Biao was a little surprised. He originally thought that Xiangyang City would be difficult to defend, but now it seems that Li Yan has some confidence.

He immediately answered Li Yan.

"As long as you can guard and live in Xiangyang City, when this incident is over, I will go to the court and promote you to General."

Don't look at it as just a partial general, the lowest general position in the general system, but it is conferred by the emperor himself, it is not comparable to the official position in the county, but it is the real general position, one Xiangyang than Li Yan now The post of captain is much higher.

When Li Yan heard this, he immediately showed joy, and immediately agreed.

"Thank you, my lord, for your appreciation."

"Don't be in a hurry to thank me, this will only happen after you hold Xiangyang and end this crisis."

Liu Biao didn't tell Li Yanduo that there were still [-] enemy troops outside the city, and he was also nervous, thinking about going to the city to recruit soldiers for defense as soon as possible.

After a few simple words to appease Li Yan, Liu Biao hurried downstairs.

To recruit Xiangyong, Liu Biao knew of course that the fastest way to recruit was the private soldiers of various wealthy families.

Although Xiangyang City has a population of 10,000+, among the 10,000+ population, there are not many people who have served as soldiers. Almost all of them are farmers and traders. , At most, it is to carry and move things. To really go to the battlefield, you still need soldiers.

And all the soldiers and horses of the imperial court have been dispatched. If Liu Biao wants to recruit soldiers, the most likely way is to go to the homes of those aristocratic families and ask them for private soldiers. In troubled times, it is common practice to keep private soldiers and dead soldiers. In larger families, there are even thousands of private soldiers. Even for small families, it is not a problem to raise dozens of people.

On the surface, these private soldiers are only relying on some farmers of the big family, but most of the time, they are used as soldiers. As long as the private soldiers of the big family in the city can be gathered, thousands of people, it is still very easy. can be recruited.

Of course, it doesn't mean that those big families will hand over their wealth and life if Liu Biao comes forward, but Liu Biao is confident that those big families who are close to him will still sell him a little bit, and they will give him some money. Hand it over to him.

And the first family he chose was the Cai family, the largest family in Jingzhou.

After all, the Cai family is the largest family in Xiangyang, and Cai Mao is his loyal supporter. As long as he comes forward, Liu Biao believes that the Cai family will definitely not disgrace him. It should be possible to send at least a few hundred private soldiers. of.

Liu Biao came to participate, but Cai Mao was not there. Cai He was the one who greeted Liu Biao. Cai He was also a member of the Cai family. Cai He is usually in charge of the family.

"Lord Zhou Mu, what kind of wind brought you here, and I hope you will be forgiven for not going out to greet you."

Liu Biao came in a hurry, without being informed by the servants, he came in directly, making Cai He lose his manners, and hurriedly apologized to Liu Biao.

Liu Biao came here to ask for Cai's family, so naturally he would not care about such a trivial matter, so he waved his hand and directly signaled Cai He not to mind.

Then he straight to the point told Cai He about his intentions for coming this time.

"Cai He, do you know what happened to the horn that was blown today?"

Cai He's complexion changed slightly. The intelligence of their Cai family is actually good. The news of the enemy's siege has already reached Cai He's ears through some servants, but Cai He still doesn't know the reason for the siege. People are just who they are.

When Liu Biao asked, Cai He didn't know how to answer, so he hesitated and shook his head.

"It's not very clear, Mr. State Shepherd, I hope to clarify."

Liu Biao didn't say much, and immediately described what happened outside the city today to Cai He briefly, and directly told Cai He that the person who attacked the city was Liu Zheng from Jiaozhou.

After some description, Cai He's face turned pale with fright.

After all, Cai He was aware of the connection between Cai Mao and Liu Zheng, and now he felt frightened, wondering if Liu Biao was asking for a crime or what he was here for.

When Liu Biao said that he wanted to borrow troops, Cai He's face softened a little.

"You know the situation in Xiangyang City. In order to support your elder brother, I also transferred [-] soldiers from Nanjun. Now there are only [-] defenders in Xiangyang. In order to defend Xiangyang, I have to ask you for secondment. Some family soldiers, after defending Xiangyang this time, they will be rewarded for their merits."

Liu Biao spoke sincerely, looked at Cai He, and waited for Cai He's answer.

Cai He was a little embarrassed, and it was easy to talk about other things, but Cai He really had no way to decide on the matter of asking for private soldiers, because most of the private soldiers were Cai Mao's personal soldiers. Cai Mao went to Changsha and brought Cai's private soldiers with him Most of them left, and there were only two or three hundred people who stayed in Xiangyang.

These 300 people, who are the usual caretakers of the nursing home, really want Cai He to hand over all these people. Even if he agrees, Liu Biao will feel that this is humiliating him.

So after Cai He smiled awkwardly, he could only answer truthfully.

"Lord Zhou Mu, it's not that my Cai family doesn't want to support you in defending Xiangyang City, it's just that most of my Cai family's private soldiers were taken to Changsha County by my elder brother, and there are not many left in Xiangyang."

Before Cai He finished speaking, Liu Biao felt vaguely uncomfortable when he heard the tone, and his face immediately turned down.

"If Master State Shepherd really needs manpower, our Cai family can gather up to 200 people at most."

Chapter 5 and Eight of Cai Zhong's Contribution

200 people.

When this number came out of Cai He's mouth, it obviously made the expression on Liu Biao's face a little unnatural.

"A mere 200 people, are you kidding me?"

Liu Biao suppressed his inner anger, and after calming down, he spoke a word.

When Cai He heard Liu Biao's slightly angry words, the expression on his face became even more embarrassed, but since Liu Biao asked, he could only bite the bullet and answer.

"Master Zhou Mu, how dare I joke with you, but our Cai family really doesn't have many manpower in Xiangyang at this time. I still have to hand over all the guards of the house guard to be able to draw out the 200 soldiers and horses." 200 people, otherwise we won't even be able to get 200 people together!"

"If you really don't believe me, I'll take you into the mansion to have a look. I'll gather all the nursing homes in the mansion, and if you take away everything you like, I won't say a word."

Cai He talked about this, even if Liu Biao didn't believe what Cai He said, he was embarrassed and really searched Cai's mansion.

He could only suppress the anger in his heart, and then said with a cold face.

"No need, two hundred soldiers and horses, just two hundred soldiers and horses. Some people are better than none. I gather 200 people here, and I will go to another house to see and gather as many people as possible."

At this time, Liu Biao didn't mean to get angry with Cai He. First, he didn't have time to talk nonsense with Cai He at this time. Second, he also knew that most of what Cai He said could not be fake, even if he really Threatening, I am afraid that Cai He will not be able to provide more manpower. Instead of this, it is better to go to the next one, maybe the harvest will be even greater.

After all, the big families in Xiangyang City have at least a dozen households. Each household can gather two to three hundred soldiers and horses, and they can gather two to three thousand people. Out of 3000 people.

Just when Liu Biao was about to leave Cai's mansion and rush to the next dignitary, Cai Zhong, who was hiding aside to eavesdrop on the conversation between Liu Biao and Cai He, suddenly came out from the back hall.

"Lord State Shepherd, please stop!"

Cai Zhong came out from the back hall, and immediately called Liu Biao who was about to leave to stop, Liu Biao turned his head and glanced at Cai Zhong.

He didn't have much impression of Cai Zhong, because Cai Mao, the head of the Cai family, rarely mentioned Cai Zhong in front of Liu Biao. Liu Biao only remembered such a person when he sent people to investigate Cai Mao's family background.

So when Cai Zhong asked him to stop, Liu Biao was a little puzzled.

"you are?"

Liu Biao asked suspiciously.

"My name is Cai Zhong. I just heard Lord Zhou Mu say that Liu Zheng is attacking the city right now?"

Cai Zhong first made a brief self-introduction, and then asked a question immediately.

"Well, it is indeed Liu Zheng. He came here in person, just outside the city, and led [-] elite soldiers. His purpose is very clear, that is our Xiangyang City."

"My lord, I think I know why he came to Xiangyang City, and I have a way to deal with Liu Zheng."

After Cai Zhong heard Liu Biao's affirmative answer, he immediately opened his mouth and said what he wanted to say, which immediately attracted Liu Biao's expression and made Liu Biao ask urgently.